This invention relates to ostomy drainage receptacles and, more particularly, to ostomy appliances comprising a flexible pouch or bag adapted to be attached to the body of a patient and receive discharge from the stoma of a patient after surgical procedures, such as colostomy, ileostomy, urostomy, and ureterostomy procedures.
In the art of ostomy appliances, considerable efforts have been devoted to providing a secure yet comfortable attaching arrangement for ostomy pouches against the human body surrounding the stoma. With the development of more secure adhesives and lighter weight pouches, many ostomy patients are employing disposable pouches which are secured to the stoma area by an adhesive rather than the more traditional but comparatively uncomfortable strap or harness arrangement.
It has long been recognized that a rigid convex mounting ring or stoma plate or face plate presents a superior surface for adhesively securing a pouch to the human body adjacent to a stoma. This concept has been almost universally applied to bag mounting rings supported by a harness or belt. Such an arrangement is shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,784,718; 2,595,934; and 2,684,676. Self-supporting or beltless bags were initially provided with a flat adhesive surface to attach the bag to the body. Examples of such arrangements are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,897,780 and Reissue No. 29,453. As is recognized in U.S. Pat. No. 4,219,023, the flexible pouch or bag making up the ostomy structure is somewhat planar in the area adjacent the stoma and many times improper fit will cause the waste material to accumulate around the stoma opening of the ostomy receptacle, thereby leading to undesirable leakage and skin conditions. To overcome this problem, the patentee discloses a convex insert which has the ability to transform existing prior art ostomy receptacles of the type employing a flexible pouch having a circumscribing cushion or pad about the ostomy opening so as to convexly position the ostomy receptacle about the stoma having due regard for the contours of the human body at the stoma site.
While the arrangement shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,219,023 advantageously adapts the flat body engaging portion of existing drainage bags to a configuration which more securely seals the drainage bag to the stoma opening, the arrangement requires a relatively complicated assembly step by the user.